Boxer Fuse Block Upgrade

Put me on the list please Sam

 

Good day Carlo,

Since you are one of the people that originally wanted a set, I already had you flagged for a set.

To others, this time around I will not be creating a list and simply posting up when they are ready and then it will simply be on a first come first serve basis.

Cheers,

Sam

 

Eagerly awaiting!

 

Cheers Sam

 

Good day All,

Just a quick update on my next run of fuse blocks... The next run of my blocks are an updated version of my original blocks. In this updated design I was able to move away from using "shorting" bars between the various fuse groups. The benefit of the shorting bars allowed me to use the same fuse block PCB for the three blocks styles (2 white versions and 1 black version). The negative side was that I had to fabricate, tin plate, and solder all the shorting blocks... The updated version removed the need of the shorting blocks, as I used heavier (i.e. thicker) copper for the traces (and added a silkscreen). This has reduced the labor effort and number of components, but increased the number of assemblies (from effectively one to three) and increased the cost of the PCB (heavier copper cost more). The benefit that I really like is that the blocks look sleeker and "cleaner".

Although I used heavier copper in this design, I was still concerned about the potential added resistance of not using the shorting blocks. As a consequence I did some additional testing and the new design is virtually the same or just ever so slightly better than the original blocks! I also did some testing/measurements on my original factory blocks which I think you will find interesting... my next post will provide the results.

As for when they new blocks will be available... It will be a while yet, as I am still waiting on my machinist to mill me some more bases...

Cheers,

Sam
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Good day All,

As mentioned in my previous post, I did some additional tests/measurements of my new block design as well as compared this data to my original OEM factory blocks. The objective of my tests/measurements was to measure the effective resistance a fuse circuit... The lower the resistance, the lower the voltage drop (and so more voltage for the load... which is very desirable), and more importantly less heat being dissipated in the fuse block (very desirable). The results of too much heat applied to the fuse block can be seen in in my of my very early posts where I presented a picture of my factory OEM block clearly showing that it failed due to heat... either because someone shorted the fuse (so no fuse in the circuit) or more likely because of the increased resistance of the entire wire clip, fuse clip, rivet, etc assembly.

As for some explanation of the tests/measurements...

The first one (Power Entry Clip to Fuse) measures the voltage drop/resistance from the top clip (power source) to the clip that attaches to the fuse.

The "Power Entry Clip to Exit Clip" measures the voltage drop/resistance from the top clip (power source) to the clip that feeds the load... thus, this includes the Fuse resistance as well.

The "Power Entry Clip to 3rd Clip" measures the voltage drop/resistance from the top clip (power source) to the third clip that feeds the load. To better explain this... On the black block the last three fuses share the same power feed and so this test connects the power feed to the 7th power clip and then the load is connected to the output of the 9th fuse. In this case we are measuring the resistance from the 7th power clip... across the board and then through the 9th fuse, etc. Please note that my OEM blocks were damaged and so I could only do this test with and adjacent fuse... and so the actual measurement if I had an intact block would have been slightly higher than what I measured.

Please view the attached pic of the test results (test current used was just under 11 Amps). Clearly it can be seen that the newer block design has lower overall resistance which is the ultimate goal and so is more desirable than the OEM design.

Since there has been a few posts about how the OEM blocks are not as bad as what people say, etc... I went so far as to thoroughly clean my OEM blocks as best as I could. Here I cleaned the bullet fuse, the clips, tightened the clips, etc... The results show that this helped a lot, but clearly the new design with ATC fuses were much better. If anything this should encourage users who are using the OEM style blocks with bullet fuses to thoroughly clean there blocks. Interestingly, my Rev 1 results were done on my own blocks that have been installed for 8 years and with no cleaning whatsoever... Although not entirely scientific it would imply that as my blocks age that less maintenance are needed to keep them working properly.

To those who firmly believe and post that there is nothing wrong with the OEM blocks... I would ask that instead of posting unsubstantiated comments like this that they either refute my tests or perform their own tests and post up their results. In fact I have asked these naysayers on several occasions to post why they feel that the OEM blocks are not an issue and every single time they have selectively ignored my post.

Lastly, to those using the OEM blocks... by all means continue to do so. All I am trying to do is present an alternative, but also to provide some real data on what issues could arise with the OEM blocks. Does it mean that if you have OEM blocks that you should not use them? No, not at all... Just simply recognize that they have issues and that you need to monitor and service them periodically (cleaning, clip re-tension, solder the rivets, etc) in order to avoid any issues.

Cheers,

Sam
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Nice work, and thanks for sharing the data. One question, and you may not know the answer...

Are Boxer blocks and GT4 blocks the same? I guess this is really a buss bar question.

Or, with your new PWB that incorporates buss bar circuitry, will I need to cut traces to reconfigure ganging to match GT4 blocks?

As always, thanks, Sam.

 

nice work sam,

and I´m surprised if you only clean the original how much better it will get

 

Good day Mark,

Thank you and you are most welcome!

In regards to the block compatibility...

All of the Black blocks are the same for the 308 series (GTB/GTS/QV Carbed or Injected, GT4), 512 Boxers (Carbed or Injected), and some of the late 365 Boxers (only those that do not have the Daytona/Dino246 style blocks).

All of the White Blocks used on the Carbed cars are the same for the 308 series (GTB/GTS GT4), 512BB, and some of the late 365 Boxers (only those that do not have the Daytona/Dino246 style blocks).

All of the White Blocks used on the injected cars are the same for the 308 (GTBi/GTSi/QV and 512BBi.

Now, when I say the "same" I am referring to the shared power input on adjacent fuses only. The Fuse sizes themselves and the respective loads will be different... All that means is that one has to ensure to:

a. use the correct fuse sizes for their particular car
b. use the correct white block for the application (i.e. carbed or injected)

My blocks cannot be used with 308 Mondials, 328's, Testarossa, and newer Ferraris, as these have a completely different Fusing system.

Lastly, the Fuse block covers are "keyed" differently between the White and Black blocks. Since the Covers usually have an affixed label that denotes the fuse size and load, Ferrari used a "keying" method to ensure that the covers could not be mistakenly "swapped" and thus causing potential fuse size installation mistakes. In other words a White block cover will not work on a Black block and vice versa.

In regards to your question:

No, not at all. As mentioned the Black blocks are all the same and you would simple get a white block for a carbed car.

Cheers,

Sam

 

Good day Romano.

Thank you!

Indeed, cleaning the original blocks cannot be underestimated and clearly the test data shows this.

Later I will do some testing and analysis on the original Ferrari wiring. Just from my cursory inspections I always felt that the wiring was undersized for its respective applications...Having recently looked at the wires, I am now curious as to how good or bad they really are and so I will tackle this question when I do my pre-season maintenance, etc, on my BB. Afterwards I will post up my results.

Cheers,

Sam

 

Mistake!

Throw the OEM blocks in the garbage and dont look back. They are total crap. If you upgrade to a blade style fuse block you'll never have to think about it again and everything will simply work better.

 

Yes you did

 

paul,
that it was getting better after cleaning is no mistake as you see.
but mistake is the whole part

 

A waste of time to clean them. Replace them with a part you never need to maintain or worry about causing a fire. The car is worth $400K, spend a few hundred $ to prevent a total loss not to mention everything just works better with what is essentially no voltage loss.

 

Good day All,

Just a status update... I just received word from my Machinist that the blocks are next in line for the mill... So... in about 2 weeks I should have bases. Shortly thereafter I will do the final assembly of the blocks.

Once they are ready to go I will post up.

Cheers.

Sam

 

U da man!!!

 

Good day Keith,

Indeed I am building more blocks. I currently have all the bits and pieces and have been slowly assembling them. I purchased some equipment to help accelerate the assembly and so with having to wait for the gear, etc everything is taking longer. Sadly, the gear I was waiting for is not working as well as I hoped and so I have abandoned the gear and have gone back to hand soldering the blocks...which is a bit slow at about 15 minutes per block (+10 minutes of cleaning). The reason that it takes this long to solder 18 clips and 9 fuse holders (per board) is that these blocks have a lot of copper on them in order to keep the resistance as low as possible... which reduces the voltage drop (and power) of the traces leaving more voltage for the load (which is where you want it). Lots of copper means a lot of heat is needed to properly reflow the solder... which, by the way, is Silver based and so it has a higher melting point. Adding to this is that I have to use some pretty nasty flux which means a lot more effort to properly clean the boards afterwards... so the whole process is somewhat time consuming. The last blocks were automated assembled, but I was unhappy with results and so I ended up hand reflowing all those connections anyway. That being said, doing it the way I have been doing it is providing excellent results and the new design has even lower resistance than my previous design and looks even "cleaner".

As for when will they be available... it will be a while before they will be generally available, as I am overloaded with work and so I solder a few boards when I have some spare time. Hopefully I will a number of them done in the next 3-4 weeks.

My apologies for the delay!

Cheers,

Sam

 

Hi Sam, I sent an email to you, but to reiterate - I'd like to purchase a set of fuse blocks for a 1984 308 QV when available, please!

Gordon (in Calgary)

 

I feel like a kid at Christmas waiting for signs of Santa's arrival.

Rgds, Mark

 

Good day All,

My apologies for the delay! Sadly, a family emergency arose and so my efforts on this project has been limited. Things should settle down in the next week or so. That being said, the PCBs are slowly being assembled a few at a time.

Cheers,

Sam

 

Good Luck Sam !

 

Please put me in for a set for my 79 BB
Thanks!
John Z

 

One more question (can't recall if asked previously): Can the blades be bent flat (parallel with the base)? My fuse box wires are hidden behind the glove box, so I'd like to do a slight rework and bend the spades flat... unless you think the metal could be too brittle.

If I do end up tweaking the blocks I'll certainly check/test to make sure that no stress fractures were induced into the solder.

Thanks again,

Rgds, Mark

 

Good day Mark,

Indeed, you can "flatten" the spade connectors without issue. There is a fair amount of solder on the connector base and so there would be little chance of damaging the solder connection. Secondly, the connector is made from a softer type of metal alloy and so it bends without too much force. In fact I flattened the connectors when I installed mine.

Sadly, not too much progress on final assembly. One of my work projects is just not going too smoothly and is really sucking up the hours... argh. I was hoping to spend some time this weekend doing some assembly, but alas my daily driver (2004 BMW X5) suffered a major coolant problem (inner coolant pipe o-ring failure ... factory design flaw) last night... and so this weekend I will be tearing apart the upper end of the engine to repair... joy... Bottom line... stay away from the newer BMWs, as there are so many design (and costly) flaws that it is ridiculous...

Cheers,

Sam

 

Funny, I can relate to both. I hate it when paying the mortgage gets in the way of important things. And as for BMWs, my wife's car is a 2008 X5 that has its fair share of problems and nuisances... but she loves it and I can't convince her to change. Yet.

Good luck with all.

Rgds, Mark